The invention relates generally to temperature sensors and, more particularly, to a rotatable temperature sensing device that may be used during a welding operation.
Welding is a process that has increasingly become utilized in various industries and applications. Such processes may be automated in certain contexts, although a large number of applications continue to exist for manual welding operations. In both cases, such welding operations rely on a variety of types of equipment to ensure the supply of welding consumables (e.g., wire feed, shielding gas, etc.) is provided to the weld in appropriate amounts at the desired time.
Welding operations are performed on a variety of different materials (e.g., metallic materials). For example, a workpiece may be formed from a carbon steel or a corrosion resistant alloy, such as stainless steel. A time duration of heat that the workpiece is exposed to may be managed for obtaining certain metallurgical characteristics. Accordingly, a quality of a welding operation on a workpiece may depend on a time history of temperatures that the workpiece is exposed to during the welding operation. Unfortunately, it may be difficult to detect the temperature of a workpiece near a joint while a welding operation is occurring on the joint. Thus, it may be difficult to determine a time history of temperatures that a workpiece is exposed to during the welding operation. Furthermore, the workpiece may rotate during the welding process, making it more difficult to determine temperatures (e.g., due to errors in measurement, wear on a device contacting the workpiece, etc.). Moreover, the workpiece may be in motion relative to a temperature measurement device during the welding process.